


You're a cold fish, Pansy Parkinson

by tsundanire



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Dealing With Trauma, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Gen, HP Femslash MiniFest, November trope: Unusual Careers, Sexual therapist, Slurs, past trauma, sexual surrogacy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-30
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-09-02 18:09:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16792075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tsundanire/pseuds/tsundanire
Summary: Pansy is fine. Really. She's been called worse before.OrWhat happens when a nosey best friend sends Pansy to a professional sexual surrogate.





	1. You're a cold fish, Pansy Parkinson.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [keyflight790](https://archiveofourown.org/users/keyflight790/gifts), [fantom_ftnoise](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fantom_ftnoise/gifts).



> Thanks for joining me in this fun little adventure! This is my very first femslash, and I am beyooond excited to get the ball rolling.
> 
> First and foremost I need to let you know, dear reader, that this work will follow the monthly tropes over at HP Femslash. Which means it won't be complete for a little while. If you'd rather read it all in one shot, keep an eye on my [tumblr](breathofmine.tumblr.com) page for updates on it's status. 
> 
> Because it's not complete as of yet, I will be adding in more warnings as I post each chapter, as well as posting the warnings in the notes above the chapter itself (until it is complete).
> 
> Lastly I want to dedicate this to two wonderful people in my life. [Chris](https://archiveofourown.org/users/keyflight790) and [Fanny](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fantom_ftnoise), my cheerleaders, and my best friends. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have written half of what I have without you guys. So this one's for you <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is pre-slash, and sets up the rest of the story! Please bare that in mind if you are coming into this thinking there is slash right off the bat!!
> 
> Chapter was Beta'd by the incredible @Violetclarity!!

_...You’re a cold fish..._

_...I see why you have so many exes..._

_...Slytherin suits you..._

_...You frigid bitch..._

  


Pansy sat with her head in her hands as the voices of previous lovers danced in her head, like a menacing tango set to the tune of her pity party.

“Come now, Pans. At least have a biscuit.” Blaise tried to tempt her with the plate of freshly baked goods, but it was no use. Nothing could bring Pansy out of the funk she was in.

“I’m just going to go.” She stood slowly, as if the very weight of her thoughts were dragging her down. Pansy hated this feeling, as if she wasn’t trying her best for each lover, as if she hadn’t gone to see different Healers, tried to figure out what was wrong with her.

It had gotten to the point that Pansy had become bitter, pushing the blame onto those who chose to sleep with her, as if they weren’t good enough to bring her over the edge. They always lashed out in kind, leaving a resentful Pansy to feel the bitter ache of resentment and the constant guilt that came with her inability to orgasm with another person. 

Because it wasn’t that she couldn’t. She’d tested that theory several times on her own, spending hours and hours just pleasuring herself–for science of course.

But the moment she was alone with someone else, man or woman, the same thing always happened: Pansy hit a point where her body would stop edging forward, and instead the lust she’d felt fizzled out, just when things were getting good. Last night was the last time, she’d decided. She was done trying to make it happen. Clearly this was atonement for her past, and it was something she’d just have to learn to deal with.

Blaise grabbed her wrist before she could leave, and rubbed his thumb over her delicate knuckles.

“Pans…listen.”

Pansy shook her head, pulling her hand away.

“I can’t, Blaise. I just can’t do this anymore. It’s breaking me apart,” she sobbed, trying to keep her tears at bay but losing the battle. “I can’t keep this up B… Eventually there’ll be nothing left of me.”

Blaise stood and pulled her into a tight embrace. Though physical affection was rare in their group, Pansy appreciated the gesture. He’d always been protective of her, Pansy knew - she’d felt that from the moment they’d met, which made it all the more interesting that feelings had never developed between them.

“I know you hate this. And you know I hate seeing you like this… So will you try one thing for me? That’s all I ask.”

Pansy could never deny Blaise a favour – regardless how stupid or ill-advised Pansy thought it might be, she always gave in.

“Fine.”

“There’s someone I want you to see.”

“What?!” Pansy hissed and pulled away.

“They aren’t a therapist, at least…not in the traditional sense.”

“Fuck. No.” She grabbed her things, fully intent on leaving.

“Pansy, please, just listen,” Blaise begged.

Pansy paused.

Blaise continued.“Your…situation, is exactly the kind of thing they specialize in. I just…I know what you’re going through. Probably better than most people. I think you should talk to them, or at least listen to what they might have to say…”

Blaise raised a brow, passing her a business card.

“I don’t know, Blaise. “

“Just…Do it for me? For my peace of mind?”

There was the clincher. Pansy clenched her jaw as she answered.

“...Fine.”  


Blaise had her wrapped around his little finger.

  


-+-+-+-

  


But she didn’t write them. At least, not right away.

It took a solid week of moping around in nothing but satin dressing gowns before she even allowed herself to look at the business card again.

It was a generic design, though Pansy felt certain that had more to do with maintaining the anonymity of the business and the integrity of its patrons. For a moment, she wondered how many people were involved in the business itself, wondered if she would be recognized, wondered a million and a half other things that could go wrong if she were to follow through with this.

_Do it for me?_ Blaise’s words filtered through Pansy’s mind again, reminding her that he only had her best interests at heart. He wouldn’t lead her on a destructive path. Sending a letter never hurt either, at least to get a little bit of information.  
  


_To whom it may concern,_

_I received your business card from a close personal friend, who encouraged me to get in contact with you. I’m what you might consider “high profile” and am extremely cautious about who I conduct my business with._

_Before I agree to any meetings, could you tell me a bit more about what you do? Or how you might be able to safeguard my identity?_

_I will leave my address for the owl, but until I know a bit more about the business, I’d rather not share any more personal information at this time._

_Thanks in advance._

  


Pansy sealed the letter with wax, and attached it to her snowy owl. Edith was a beauty, and by far the most intelligent creature Pansy had ever had the pleasure of encountering. She was as proud a bird as any Slytherin, and just as cunning. Sometimes Pansy wondered if the bird was secretly an animagus, for how smart she was, but then Edith would bring home a dead bird.

She sent the owl on her way, with hopes of hearing from someone soon. Even so, a small part of her continued to worry about the validity of the business.

  


-+-+-+-

Four days, thirteen hours, seventeen minutes. That was how long it took for Pansy to receive a reply. But then Edith came soaring right into her sitting room, dropping the cream-coloured envelope in Pansy’s lap.

_Hi there,_

_First off, let me thank you for at least initiating contact. I know how hard that first step can be. I’m glad to hear you’ve taken an interest in us, and I’ll do my best to answer your questions; however, it’s important to note that every experience is different and what might work for one person may not for the next. We offer a catered experience for each person, based on what we learn about them, and what we think might help._

_As for your concerns involving your identity, I can assure you that we treat each client with the same level of confidentiality and privacy. We deal with several, as you’d say, ‘high-profile’ clients, and are well versed in taking good care of their identities._

_The way we conduct our business can be a bit more complicated to explain. Above, it was outlined that every experience is different, and we try to accommodate each situation as uniquely as the individual. Typically we’d start with the initial meet-and-greet, which allows us to get to know you on a more personal level. From there, we set you up with someone for a more involved session. They will be able to move forward in assessing your concerns._

_Sadly, at this time and without more information on your situation, I cannot provide much more information than that. To do so without having an initial meeting could compromise not just our clients, but our staff as well. Safety as well as confidentiality are our main concerns._

_If you’d like to set something up, simply write in a time you’d be comfortable with below. It will get automatically transferred to our database to match you with one of our staff. When we’ve paired you, you will see a Floo address below that you can use on the date and time of your meeting._

_Thanks so much for your interest in our business. We hope to hear from you soon._

_Marauders Industries_

  


Pansy read the letter at least four times before deciding it wouldn’t hurt to at least talk to someone. The chances that these people would yield a different result than anything else she’d tried seemed slim, but she’d promised Blaise, and that was worth at least trying.

Marking down a time for the next day made it easier for her anxiety, as Pansy knew the longer she pushed it off, the more stressed she would get thinking about all the ways it could go wrong.

After the ink disappeared, as if being sucked into the parchment, it reappeared again a few minutes later with a Floo address, which confirmed that Pansy would be meeting with someone from Marauders Industries the next day at _Number Twelve Grimmauld Place._

-+-+-+-

The initial meeting went better than Pansy could have expected, though the start had come with its share of awkwardness. The place she Floo’d to turned out to be someone’s living room, which had left her feeling slightly uncomfortable. To add to that, the room itself seemed so dingy and old, as if it had been around for centuries, but someone had made attempts to modernize it. It wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but was far from Pansy’s tastes.

When she arrived, there had been a house-elf to guide her to one of the musty looking couches. At least it didn’t release a cloud of dust when she sat down.

After a moment or two by herself, a tall-ish man with close cropped hair and blue eyes, came around the corner and offered his hand. He paused for a moment, taken aback by her presence. Clearly he already knew exactly who she was. As always, her reputation preceded her in all things. _The one who would have given up the saviour, to save the rest of the student body._

He seemed to shake the feeling off, presenting her with a pleasant smile but a carefully guarded expression. She lifted her hand to shake his, knowing it was the polite thing to do.

“Nice to meet you, Ms…?”

Ah, so they were going to just pretend then.

“Parkinson. Pansy Parkinson.”

“Pleasure to meet you. I’m Padfoot,” He grinned at her sheepishly, as if he could guess that she very much doubted that was his real name. “Confidentiality,” he shrugged. It was an answer she could understand. She’d briefly thought about giving a fake name, but for one, she knew she’d be recognized fairly easily, and for two, if she was really going to do this, Pansy wanted to do it head-on.

“A pleasure.” She nodded and placed her hands carefully on her lap.

“Would you like a cup of tea?”

“Actually, I’d rather just get into this already, if you don’t mind,” Pansy answered as calmly as she could, even though her entire core was turbulent with anxiety. This was a bad idea. Talking didn’t work. It never worked.

“That’s fair. Now normally I have you tell me a bit about your situation so I know which of my staff I should pair you with. But I think in this case, you might need a bit of a warm up.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I can’t pretend that I don’t know who you are.” Ah, so he had given her the chance to create a persona after all. “And I know that you are a Slytherin.”

She sighed. This really had been a bad idea. She certainly hadn’t come here to get shamed.

“I think I should go.” She made to leave but Padfoot held up his hand.

“Wait! What I mean is, I understand Slytherins, probably more than my own house would have you believe.”

They looked to be about the same age, but for the life of her Pansy couldn’t really place who he was. Must have been a Hufflepuff.

“And how exactly does that help me?”

“Well, I know that most Slytherins like having even ground. In this case, you telling me about why you’ve come here would make you feel vulnerable and far too open. However, if I gave you a bit of background on myself it would put us on the same footing. You’d have something on me, therefore you could trust me to keep your secrets. Is that correct?”

Pansy thought about it for a moment. He was absolutely spot on. She hated feeling any kind of vulnerability, which of course had led to other trust issues in her past relationships.

“You certainly aren’t wrong,” she murmured Her leg bounced the only outward sign of her anxiety.

“Alright then. Hang on.” Padfoot got up and passed his wand over himself, his features shifting and melting away, eventually becoming more and more familiar to Pansy, until finally the man standing before her was none other than…

“Potter?!” Pansy leapt out of her seat and took a few steps back. Was this all a prank then? This was how they lot of them were going to get back at her, after all these years. Give her the potential of a safe space, then bringing it crashing down on her. And Blaise! That bloody, good-for-nothing arsehole.

“Hey, hey!” Potter raised his hands, which Pansy assumed was his attempts at getting her attention and calming her - as if she were nothing more than a wild animal who’d been spooked. “Relax Pansy, it’s alright! No one here is going to hurt you. It’s just you and me…and Kreacher.” He added the last as an after-thought, though Pansy assumed with a dreadful name like that, Kreacher was likely the house-elf from earlier.

“What the bloody _fuck_ is going on Potter?! You convince me to come here, tell me it’s safe, and then what?”

Potter kept his hands raised, and he continued to speak in a soft gentle voice.

“Someone gave you our card because they thought you could use our help. It’s probably that they’ve used our services, and found them to be helpful. I wasn’t lying Pansy, I want to tell you my story. Will you allow me to?”

Pansy’s brain was moving a mile a minute, but eventually she decided it couldn’t hurt to hear Potter out. If nothing else, she’d have some dirt to use against him if he ever breathed a word of this to the press. She slowly took her seat on the couch once more, gesturing to Harry tocontinue.

“It took me a long time to come to terms with my childhood, and the abuse that I went through with my relatives. It took me even longer to understand that my self-esteem issues, especially those regarding my body, came from that time. For a long while, I never wanted anyone to see me without my clothes, which I’m sure you can imagine made things difficult for any relationship.”

Pansy nodded politely, though she somehow couldn’t believe the Golden Boy of Gryffindor ever had issues in the bedroom. He likely had miles and miles of people lined up waiting to get in his bed.

“I kept most of my issues buried deep inside, pretending there was nothing wrong for years, and trying to convince myself I didn’t care about not being in a relationship, or having someone I could truly be myself with.”

“Sorry if this is prying, but...what about–”

“Ginny?” Potter chuckled and shook his head. “I know it kinda looked like we were a thing, but that’s because she was trying to ignore the fact that she wasn’t all that interested in men.”

Pansy gaped, not even bothering to hide her shock.

“I… What?!”

“Oh, Ginny? Yeah, she’s very gay. Always has been.” Potter’s amused expression did nothing to wipe away the shock still written across Pansy’s face. “Long story short, it took me a lot of time trying what felt like a million different ways to overcome my issues, including Healers, potions, diets, and Merlin, the list goes on. Nothing made any difference until my friend Dean suggested I give a very uncommon Muggle therapy a try.”

Pansy wrapped her hands around her knee, the nervous, twitchy energy starting to radiate outward from her core. The longer this went on, the harder it was to contain her anxiety. Potter seemed to notice this and wrapped up his thoughts.

“Have you ever heard of sexual surrogacy?” He asked point blank.

“No.” Pansy stared at him with wide eyes.

“No need to look so worried, it’s nothing bad! Honestly! I tried it out for myself, and while I found parts of it very insightful, there were other parts I thought could do with more of a...magical touch.” Potter grinned at her, and while he probably thought he was being jovial or amusing, Pansy thought it looked a bit maniacal. “

“I...Are you saying I should have sex as a way to solve my issues with sex?” Pansy’s eyes probably couldn’t have gotten any wider if she tried.

Potter paused, as if trying to put his thoughts in order before speaking.

“I won’t say you will, but I can’t say you won’t either. That’s not up to me to say.”

Pansy’s face screwed up in confusion. Dear Circe, what had she gotten herself into?

“So what are you saying Potter?” She was trying for calm, but the words came out a bit hysterical.

“I’m saying that you’ll be paired with someone who can assess what you need. Better than I can, anyways. And your partner will help walk you through exercises – mental, physical, and magical – that will help push you through whatever roadblock brought you to us in the first place.”

Pansy narrowed her eyes.

“But I haven’t even told you my issue yet.”

Potter shook his head, biting his lower lip gently.

“That’s something you’ll discuss with your sexual surrogate, not me. And trust me, I know the perfect person for you. Regardless of your concerns, I know the two of you will do some great work together.”

Pansy wasn’t so sure about that, but sighed and nodded her head in consent. It wasn’t like she had many other options at this point. This was quite literally her last resort. It was this or fail and remain a spinster for the rest of her life.

“When do I meet this… person?”

“I’m just going to send her a quick note about timing, but I think she’s free later this afternoon. I could set you both up for an initial meeting on neutral ground if you’d like?”

Pansy blinked.

“She?”

Potter’s cheeks flamed. “Was I wrong in my assumption?”

Pansy thought about lying, but it wouldn’t get her very far. Besides, maybe Potter did know the right person for the job. He did save them after all, maybe he knew what he was doing?

“No...You weren’t wrong. I was just surprised you managed to pick up on it.”

“I’ve only been wrong once so far. And that was my own stubbornness, I suppose.” Potter shrugged, clearly not giving anymore information than that. “So, this afternoon?”

“Yes, you can tell her I’m free. She can come to my Manor. I’ll leave the

floo address.”

Pansy left feeling a little better, though she still couldn’t say she was entirely convinced. It wasn’t until later that afternoon, as she was sitting in the salon waiting for her _guest_ to arrive, that Pansy wondered if Potter was an idiot after all.

That was before Ginevera Weasley came out of the fireplace, a stunning woman of medium stature with brilliant red hair flowing down her back, and a smattering of freckles across every inch of exposed skin. She was admittedly gorgeous, but a pain and a half in Pansy’s arse. And not the good kind of pain either.


	2. Under her thumb; Around her finger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pansy and Ginny take a stroll and meet an unexpected person from Pansy's past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really want to thank @icarusinflight so so so much for the incredible help on this chapter. Honestly I feel so honoured at the time you took to look this over, for your thoughts and your comments that really fleshed this chapter out a bit more. 
> 
> For this month's femslash-minifest prompt: Fake dating

“I’m going to kill Potter.” Pansy muttered as Ginny Weasley stepped out of the bright green flames, and dusted herself off. Though, Pansy wasn’t entirely sure how strong the motivation for murder felt at the moment. Even though Potter thought setting Pansy up with the female Weasley was a good idea, for some inexplicable reason, Pansy’s brain decided that Ginny Weasley had changed from gawkish, awkward school girl, and instead had developed into one of the most stunning women Pansy had ever had the pleasure of looking at. 

From the top of her long fiery-red hair, over stunning creamy skin smattered with freckles, all the way down legs that seemed to go on forever...it was hard to deny. Ginny was absolutely Pansy’s type, but seeing her in the Manor made Pansy panic and feel like running. Which was absurd, since this was Pansy’s home and Ginny was the guest. 

“Huh. I can honestly say, I wasn’t expecting you.” Ginny tilted her head, still waiting politely by the fireplace.

“I’m not sure how you expect me to respond to that. Potter didn’t tell you it was me, before sending you over?” Pansy waved her hands to the couch opposite herself, indicating that Ginny should take a seat. 

Taking a quick look around the room, Pansy checked to make sure everything was well in order, with not even a teaspoon out of place, then watched as Ginny took a seat in the blue chaise opposite her. 

“No, he didn’t. But generally it doesn’t much matter. I do my job, regardless of who’s on the other end of the floo.” Ginny shrugged and tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear. 

“Can I offer you tea? I’m not really sure how these meetings usually go for you…” 

There was the anxiety again, rearing its ugly head, simply because Pansy was feeling out of sorts not having a pattern or plan to fall back on, which in turn caused her to be even more overly polite than she usually was when hosting. Perhaps it was a bit of an exaggeration to some, but Pansy felt like she was drowning. Were they just going to talk, or would they get straight to shagging? Did Ginny know every detail already, or had Potter left most of her story out? Dread washed over her like the heavy ocean waves, threatening to keep her below the surface. 

“Ah, no. That’s alright. I mean, I won’t be staying too long today. I can see you’re not feeling very comfortable, and if we’re going to make this work, you need to feel comfortable.” 

“I-...What? You’re okay with this? With me?” Pansy chewed on her lip - a terrible habit, but one that always seemed to show up when her nerves were frayed. more nervous happens appearing the longer this went on. 

“Well, yeah. I mean, it’s not before. We’ve all grown. We’re different people now.” Ginny shrugged but her smile was easy and it felt comforting to Pansy. She was sunshine, and Pansy was the dark cloud encroaching on her brilliance. 

“You say that, but it’s not like many other people believe that. I find that hard to believe. We’re not like most people. Most people didn’t try to give your ex-boyfriend to the Dark Lord. It’s not an easy reputation to move past.” Pansy snorted. 

Ginny seemed to think about that for a moment, eyes trained on Pansy’s with a gaze so intense it was almost heated.

“Every situation is different, and unique. As is every person. No one can truly know someone’s motivation unless they talk to that person.” Ginny nodded as if that answer cleared everything up.

“You say that like you have first hand knowledge.”

“Well… Second, or third-hand really. Harry told me about Professor Snape’s motivations in being a spy for the order… and Dumbledore’s motivations in keeping him safe all those years. Two completely different people, one viewed as a hero and the other a traitor. And yet, Snape saved Harry’s life again and again, and Dumbledore considered him a lamb meant for slaughter.” Ginny sighed and shook her head.

“...That’s a lot to take in.” 

“I mean, that’s just the short version, and it’s a bit more complicated than that, but I’m sure you get what I’m trying to say.” Ginny grinned earnestly. “I know you have your reasons for what happened in the past, but if I let something like that get in the way, I wouldn’t be the best in my particular field.”

Pansy snorted. “The best? I guess we’ll see about that.” 

And just like that, her anxiety was pushed aside in favour of competition. Maybe this particular Weasley knew what she was talking about after-all, and it was that thought that put a smile - albeit filled with snark - on Pansy’s face. 

  
  


-+-+-+-

  
  


“And you’re sure this is okay? I just want you to feel comfortable while we work on getting comfortable around each other?” Ginny prodded Pansy lightly on the shoulder. It felt odd, that Ginny was now concerned with her comfort, after years of being on opposing sides. Especially considering the times when Pansy would have liked nothing more than to make Ginny feel uncomfortable, and the certainty that Ginny had felt the same. But Ginny was a professional, and it was amazing how comfortable she was making Pansy feel. 

Pansy stared at the cup in her hand, steam rising from the opening, and shrugged. 

“Given the situation, I don’t know that I’ll ever be completely comfortable.”

Her dark eyes scanned the bustling crowd around her, with a frown and growing anxiety. With the holidays approaching, Diagon Alley was the place to be for shopping - gift ideas in every window, and plenty of places to warm up with a hot drink or something to eat, made the usually popular destination, even more so. But the further they walked into the dense crowd, the more Pansy began to realize that most people didn’t have their eyes on her. In fact, hardly anyone seemed to notice their existence. 

“It’s not so bad, is it?” Ginny tried once more, taking a sip from her cup. She’d ordered some sort of complicated caramel flavoured coffee drink, that sounded far too sweet to Pansy.

“No… I suppose not.” Pansy frowned when someone bumped against her while scurrying after a brood of rambunctious children. “Ugh, why even have that many if you can’t even control them?” 

Ginny snorted beside her. Pansy turned to look at her, and paled when she realised how insulting her words might have come across. 

“Ah shite. Sorry. I didn’t mean- It wasn’t about-…Fuck I really put my foot in it this time.” Pansy cursed, the harsh words so at odds with her upbringing. Her mother had often commented that proper ladies never used words like that, it made them sound licentious - even as a child, Pansy had never understood how those two things were related.

“S’fine. I know where I come from, and I’m not ashamed. I love my family and wouldn’t trade them for the world. But my mother was quite skilled at keeping my brothers under control.”

Pansy twitched a brow up in amusement.

“I’m sure she had you all under her thumb.”

“Not all of us.” 

And then Ginny winked at Pansy. It was meant to be humorous, teasing, and harmlessly flirtatious, and yet it brought a flush to Pansy’s cheeks that had nothing to do with the cold. 

“So...What made you choose here of all places?” Pansy muttered, wrapping the thick pea-coat tighter around her body. Her colourful silk scarf, while beautiful, did absolutely nothing to combat the chill working through her. 

“Part of my job is to get to know you better. I wanted a chance to do that in different settings.” Ginny was clad only in a light coat, but she didn’t seem cold. Perhaps she was one of those people who were a furnace even in cold temperatures. 

“You mean, you wanted to see how I dealt with being in public.” Pansy snarked.

“Well, partly. I want to see where your potential concerns stem from, so it may require us to...enjoy each other’s company in different crowds. But I’ll be sure to limit those outings, and you’ll be informed beforehand.” Ginny started walking again, slow enough that even in heels, Pansy could keep up without fear of slipping on the snowy path.

“And what else was there?” 

“What?”

“You said partly. So what’s the other reason for bringing me here?”

“Well,” Ginny flicked a glance her way, and it was hard to miss the mischievous twinkle in her eye. “I just wanted an excuse to have a gorgeous girl on my arm during Diagon Alley’s busiest season.” 

Pansy felt her skin flush all the way down to her toes. She plastered her best sneer on her face and attempted to banter.

“Well that hardly counts.” 

“How do you figure?” 

“I’m not exactly on your arm, now am I?” Pansy returned, winking flirtatiously. See? She was just as capable of playing coy as Ginny seemed to be.

“Oh! You’re right!” Ginny exclaimed with a dramatic flourish. She paused right in the middle of the path, grasped Pansy’s hand, and looped her through her arm. “There!” 

They burst out laughing at the absurdity of the moment, and Pansy felt...normal. She felt like her past didn’t matter here, and if Ginny - who was so directly connected with what she’d done - could move forward and accept her as she is, then maybe so could the rest of the world. 

They started walking again, arms linked together, Pansy feeling strangely warm now despite the cold wind still blowing in her face. She was feeling so content in the moment that she hardly noticed when another couple bumped into her side. For a moment, she just assumed it was another bustling shopper, but then…

“Pansy?” The male voice came from behind her. 

Pansy stopped in her tracks, feeling dread leach into her like a poison, sucking out all the happiness she’d just attained. Dear Circe, she hoped it wasn’t....

“Derek?” Pansy turned to see her ex, as devastatingly handsome as he was the first day she’d met him at a pureblood party, of course; though the party had been as boring as the white hair on an ageing senior. His hair was the colour of raven’s feathers, a kind of inky black that seemed to swirl like oil, and his eyes were so blue they could have been crystals. On his arm was a dark-skinned woman Pansy didn’t recognize, and while he was well within his rights to move on, bitterness made her stomach coil tight. 

“Oh wow, I didn’t expect to see you here!” His tone was surprised but polite, though his eyes narrowed when he caught sight of her arm linked with Ginny’s. Pansy decided to beat him to the question.

“And yet, here I am. Who’s this on your arm Derek? A new beau?” Pansy attempted distasteful smugness, but wasn’t sure how well worked. 

“Ah!” Derek beamed and brought the brunette forward. “This is Emmaline. We met during my last trip to Paris.” 

Emmaline stuck out her hand, nails perfectly manicured and covered in red nail polish. All together, Pansy was briefly reminded of Blaise’s Mother. There was no denying Emmaline was absolutely breathtakingly beautiful, but there was a look in her sharp eyes that spoke volumes in terms of intelligence. 

“Eet eez my pleasure.” Emmaline’s rich accent seemed to draw the eyes of those around her. Pansy shook her hand lightly, but felt dumbstruck. How the hell was she supposed to respond to that?  _ Nice to meet you. You must be the one fucking my ex now. I’m sure he’s happier now that he has someone twice as hot, and able to reach orgasm.  _

“Nice to meet you.” Pansy wished she could leave. Wished she hadn’t agreed to come here in the first place. 

“I see you’re dating again as well.” Derek raised a brow in Ginny’s general direction. Pansy raised her brows, intent on correcting him, but he continued and leaned right into Ginny’s space. “I wouldn’t get your hopes up. She’s a cold one.” He loud-whispered conspiratorially. Pansy gaped. Was this arsehole for real? Dragging her dirty laundry out for the world to hear?

“Oh I’m sorry! You must be the guy with the small dick I’ve heard so much about?” Ginny exclaimed cheerfully, as if she were talking about puppies rather than the size of Derek’s genitals. Pansy snorted, barely able to hide the grin from her face. Damn, but Ginny was a minx. 

“I beg your  _ pardon _ ?!” Derek spluttered.

“Oh was that not you? Oh I’m so sorry, you must be the quick-draw then!” Ginny continued. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, though I hardly think  _ pleasure  _ is the right word in this instance. In any case, we really need to be going.” Ginny leaned in, whispering just as conspiratorially as Derek had. “Can you believe how lucky I am? I’m going to be eat her out until she comes on my face. Again.” Ginny groaned throatily and winked at Emmaline, who grinned in reply. 

“I know  _ je suis jaloux _ .” Emmaline chuckled and maneuvered away from them, tutting Derek as they walked away. 

“I like her.” Ginny flashed Pansy a grin. 

As amusing as that had been, Pansy now felt drained by the experience. It must have shown on her face, or maybe it was in the way her body sagged into their connected arms, because Ginny’s grin gave way to a far softer expression.

“Let’s get you home.” She patted Pansy’s arm gently and apparated them back to Pansy’s manor. 

-+-+-+-

  
  
  


Ginny didn’t stay long after dropping Pansy off, but did sit with her over a pot of hot tea. It warmed their chilled extremities, as well as started to melt something inside of Pansy, or at least that’s what she chose to believe. Because it had only been two meetings and yet despite Ginny being in her space, Pansy didn’t seem to mind how the Weasley was slowly starting to slip beneath her carefully constructed walls. Even though the day hadn’t been all sunshine and rainbows, Ginny had been there with her every step of the way, even going so far as to occasionally flirt with her. Had that been part of the therapy? Or was it as unexpected to Ginny, as their strange and unexpected chemistry was to Pansy?

After finishing her cup, Ginny stood to leave.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t like another cup?” Pansy tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear. 

“No, I won’t stay. I think you need some time for yourself, and I would highly encourage a warm bath to relax.”

“Is that so?” Pansy wriggled her brows teasingly. “Trying to get me starkers already, Weasley?” 

“No, no.” Ginny laughed and brought Pansy’s hand to her lips, barely grazing the knuckles with a tender kiss. “But I promise not to make you wait too long.” And with that she left. 

The heat swirling in Pansy’s cheeks shifted lower until her whole body felt warm. It was a simple tease of course, one to make her anticipate their future encounters, but also meant to try and put her at ease. Suffice it to say, Pansy stopped thinking about Derek almost immediately, and thoughts of red hair, creamy freckled skin, and chocolate eyes filled her thoughts and dreams. 

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on [tumblr](breathofmine.tumblr.com) for more updates!


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